Five Times Morty Needed a Hug and One Time Rick Did
by ShamrockNinny
Summary: Summary: Five times Morty needed a hug and one time Rick did. Angst, hurt, comfort, slightly OOC, but hey, I read into the show whatever I want to. First time R&M writer. I found it difficult to capture Rick's speech and Morty's, also probably failed at capturing the full breadth of character expressed in the show.
1. Chapter 1

Five Times Morty Needed a Hug and One Time Rick Did

Summary: Five times Morty needed a hug and one time Rick did. Angst, hurt, comfort, slightly OOC (out of character), but hey, I read into the show whatever I want to. First time R&M writer. I found it difficult to capture Rick's speech and Morty's, also probably failed at capturing the full breadth of character expressed in the show.

I really meant for this to be more light hearted.

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1.

Morty screamed, pain lancing through him. The gromflomite interrogator pressed the button and electricity once again coursed through Morty's body, pulling a blood curdling scream from him. Several seconds later the electricity stopped and Morty collapsed back against the medical chair he was tied to, trying to breathe.

"Just tell us where Rick Sanchez is and we'll let you go."

"Screw you!" Morty gasped out.

He was terrified and in so much pain. Where was grandpa Rick? Why hadn't he saved him yet?

Another course of electricity made Morty convulse on the table, screams now hoarse and just as desperate.

"Grandpa!" Morty screamed, tears in his eyes and pain everywhere.

The electricity stopped and Morty was sobbing, wishing he was dead. Where was grandpa Rick? He just wanted this to stop.

Quiet voices buzzed to the side of him but Morty was able to understand them over the pain in his head.

"This isn't working."

"We're just going to kill him, we need Rick Sanchez, not the damn investigation team in here asking questions and slapping on indictments about misuse of Federation resources and practicing non-sanctioned torture."

"Fine, fine. We'll try something else."

A rough foreleg of the invertebrate slapped Morty's face and Morty blearily opened his blood shot eyes.

"Ple-please... don-"

The gripping foreleg of the gromflomite came down again, catching Morty's cheek bone and making his head spin.

"If this works, no one is going to care about how we got Rick Sanchez, they'll be too busy congratulating us on capturing the mulitverse's most dangerous criminal!"

Morty felt his arm being yanked and then a cool needle slid into his skin. Whatever it was the effect was instantaneous, pain exploding in every part of Morty. He barely heard the sharp curses of the gromflomites as he sunk into a paralyzing existence of hot, burning pain.

Everything came back in a terrible rush, he was still in pain, but his mind was back. The gromflomites were on the floor, a bullet wound through one of the gromflomite's labrum and the other riddled with bullet holes to the point where it didn't even look like a gromflomite.

Cold, thin hands were on him, gently brushing at his face, pushing back his non-existent bangs and mumbling his name in drunken tones, stuttering past the syllables and filled with worry.

"Mor-Morty?"

Morty whimpered, his head felt all wrong and his heart was pounding strangely, offbeat. Rick uttered his name again and shook Morty by his shoulders. Morty couldn't respond, feeling as Rick pulled him up into a hug, whispering how sorry he was and that everything was going to be alright. Morty would've opened his eyes to try to see if it was really Rick, because his grandpa never said those kind of things, but he hurt too much

"Mo-Mother- Sonsovbitches! I'll-I'll-IBluurghll friggin' tear 'em apart!"

Morty felt someone fumble with his restraints and then he was lifted from the table. The pain erupted again and Morty screamed, collapsing into unconsciousness.

When Morty woke up again it was to Rick's bedroom, strange machinery beeping around him. Rick was next to him, fiddling with some kind of thing.

"Pumped ya, pumped, pumped ya up wiAUGHth friggin' da-dark matter! Those motherfuckers! Yo-you should be dead, Mo-Morty. Might sti-still..." Rick trailed off.

Rick fixed the machine to his satisfaction and turned to Morty, a hand jerkily running its way through Morty's short hair.

"It'll be okay, Morty."

Another needle plunged into Morty's arm and he flinched back from it. Something ice cold seemed to begin to crawl through his veins and Morty began shaking, pain returning. Rick leaned over, pulling Morty close.

"It-it'll be ov-over soon, Morty."

Rick clenched his eyes shut as for the next several hours Morty writhed in pain, ensconced in Rick's arms. Pressing his face onto the crown of Morty's head he held his crying grandson close. Morty wouldn't remember this once he woke up, dark matter was the most corrosive and painful substance in existence. He could only imagine the hours Morty had spent experiencing it, and now the many hours getting it out of his system. All because of Rick.

Morty wouldn't remember this, but Rick would.

"Wubba lubba dub dub," Rick whispered.

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I capped the language, otherwise it would've been way more explicit.


	2. Chapter 2

Again, sorry for the serious subject matter, I hope you all enjoy. If you have any suggestions feel free to PM me or leave a review.

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2.

Morty was sitting in the front room, watching some TV show that his sister wanted to watch. Summer however had her eyes glued to her phone, fingers tapping away at the touch screen. There was a shout on the TV, a teenager screaming at her boyfriend for some betrayal. Morty would've usually argued with his sister, fought over the remote or something. Right now though he didn't really feel like watching much of anything, Mom was in the kitchen, collapsed over the counter on her umpteenth cup of wine.

Morty felt depression slip over him, it had been several weeks since his dad had been kicked out. The house was quieter, no more arguments. His mom however seemed to drink almost as much as grandpa Rick did.

There was the soft chime of the door bell. Morty looked over to his sister, Summer's gaze was still focused on the screen of her phone. Morty glanced over to the kitchen, he didn't think Mom was going anywhere anytime soon. Standing up he went to the door and opened it. It was his dad, a half drunk bottle of vodka in hand.

"H-h-hi, Jerr-Jerry," Morty said quietly, eyes down cast so he wouldn't have to see his father.

"So it's Jerry now," Jerry slurred viciously, pushing roughly past Morty to stumble into the house.

"Da-dad, where-where-where are you-"

Jerry however wasn't listening, walking drunkenly from the entryway towards the kitchen.

"I want to talk to the bitch."

Morty frowned, nervous anxiety stirring in him. He grabbed ineffectively at his father's arm, Jerry just dragging him with him towards the kitchen. The look on Beth's face was a mixture between shock and complete fury.

"What are you doing here?!" Beth bit out, she was a more seasoned drinker so her movements and cohesion were better than Jerry's.

Jerry raised an accusing arm, pointing at Beth. "You did this! You selfish bitch!"

"Pl-plea-please, dad," Morty begged.

He was ignored, Jerry pushing him away harshly so he hit up against the cabinets.

"Me the bitch?!" Beth said, voice raising.

"I'm not the one who is like a pathetic worm, jobless and so utterly dependent on praise and me holding your hand! You're a spineless, pathetic child! If anyone's the bitch here, it would be you!"

Summer chose that moment to enter, face at first expressing boredom but quickly morphing into surprise and worry.

"Dad? Mom? What's going on here?!"

She however was ignored just like Morty. Jerry took a step towards Beth, accusing arm waving up and down threateningly. Morty felt his stomach clench and he approached again, trying to get his bickering parents apart.

"C-c'mon, dad, mo-mom," Morty tried, hand reaching out for his father's arm once again.

It was roughly thrown off and Jerry took another step forward.

"That's not true Beth, you need me, you've always needed me!"

Beth shook her head, stepping closer so that the two were just a foot apart.

"You say that, but look who's the one who came crawling back! On your hands and knees Jerry!"

Jerry raised his hand, the one with the bottle in it. Instinct from the many adventures with Rick had Morty pushing himself between the two. A moment later and he was sprawled on the ground, something warm and sticky dripping down his head and everything fuzzy as he kept his eyes shut. Someone was screaming, it sounded a lot like Summer. Another person was yelling, anger lighting up their voice, that was his mom. The last voice was male, stuttering some kind of apology.

Morty blinked his eyes open, he felt like throwing up. Flopping gracelessly to his side he began vomiting all over the floor. Once done he rolled back onto his back and closed his eyes. His head hurt, that usually happened on his adventures with Rick.

"Grandpa?" Morty whispered.

Rick would show up, fix whatever the alien had done to Morty and they'd be on their way home. Rick would spout something about needing to finish whatever they were doing and then fix Morty. Another familiar voice entered the fray, screaming curses in that stuttering voice of his. Morty relaxed a little, Rick was here and he would fix this. Morty let himself pass out.

Morty woke up in his own bed, not remembering anything that had happened. A soft hand was on his forehead. He opened his eyes to see Summer seated next to him on the bed, one of his hands intertwined in her own.

"Summer?" Morty managed to weakly say.

Summer managed a weak smile.

"How are you doing, Morty?"

"O-o-okay, I-I guess."

Summer smiled at that but it was a weak smile tinged with bitterness. It did little to cheer Morty up and it didn't help with the fuzzy memories of exactly why he felt terrible and why his older sister was sitting next to him on his bed looking as if someone had died.

"That's good," Summer replied lamely, her phone clutched in her hands even though Morty could tell it was off.

She reached her hand out and brushed her fingertips over a spot on his head, the pain which Morty hadn't really registered spiked and he jerked away from her touch. Her hand flinched away and a apologetic look came on her face.

"I-I-uh-wha-what happened?" Morty wasn't remembering exactly what happened, the events fuzzy in his brain.

One thing he was sure of though was that it hadn't been part of one of Rick's adventures.

Summer bit her lip and she glanced nervously to the side, fingers twisting around her phone.

"What do you remember?"

Morty squeezed his eyes shut, trying to recall the events that had lead to his head injury and Summer looking so serious and worried. It all came back, a snap as his memories came back to him. The door bell, his dad, both of them utterly inebriated. Morty paled and his chest tightened. He could hear Summer but he couldn't understand her.

She disappeared and Morty sunk back on his pillow, breathing haggard and mind frozen. Then the pungent smell of his grandfather enveloped him, followed quickly by the thin, callused fingers of his grandfather prodding at his face. Rick was talking but Morty's chest was still tight with anxiety and the room seemed to be floating. The fingers moved from his face and Morty was pulled from the bed and then shaken.

Morty's hearing came back to him, "-uuuucking pull yourself together Morty, ya, you, yoBLurrghu can't do this, pull you, you, your shiuuurpt, together Morty."

Morty blinked and was surprised to find tears in his eyes. His head was pounding and guilt and worry overwhelmed him. His parents hadn't just separated they had come to blows, his dad had tried to hurt his mom and he hadn't done anything about it. It felt like everything that had just happened was his fault.

Morty's stomach churned and he was surprised to find a small garbage bin roughly shoved in his lap by Rick. Seconds later he felt his stomach clench and then he was vomiting into the bin. A hand was rubbing his back and he was surprised to find that it was his grandfather offering the physical comfort.

"I shoulda, shoulda done this eeeaaaarlier, way way, sooner."

A small needle was slipped into Morty's forearm with a slight pinch that had him barely registering the movement. Immediately the pain in his head vanished and he felt his whole body relax. Morty slumped against Rick, eyes slipping shut and breathing evening out. He felt Rick run a hand through his hair before pulling Morty into a hug.

"To-told ya, Morty, told ya, I told ya, juuuuuust us, Rick and Morty, me ma-ma-man of the house. Nuh-never needed J-Jerry. Bastard got what he deserved."

Morty jerked a little at the implications of that sentence but whatever Rick had shot him up with was working in full and he felt himself quickly falling toward sleep. It felt strange to have Rick holding him but it made him feel safe in a way he had never experienced, Morty just let himself fall asleep to the pungent smell of his grandfather and the sharp limbs that ensconced him.


	3. Chapter 3

Thanks to those who have reviewed and followed and read! Much appreciated. I hope you enjoy this chapter, again, if you have any suggestions or a particular scenario you want to see feel free to PM me or to leave a review!

T for language. I can't help it, Rick speaks to me in cuss words.

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3.

Morty stood awkwardly in front of his class, stuttering his way through a presentation on ecosystems. It was obvious that no one was listening, the low chatter making it even harder to continue. His throat tightened and the room seemed to be spinning. Mrs. Lloyd didn't seem to even be paying attention, eyes focused on her computer screen as she sat at her desk.

"I-I-I-" Morty broke off feeling both too hot and too cold.

He fumbled with the note cards he had prepared and they tumbled to the floor. There was a wave of laughter in the classroom and Morty's face flushed red and he found his hands shaking and his voice gone. Morty dropped to the ground, trying to pick up his cards. The laughter increased and a few people shouted out the word 'retard' and 'idiot'. The bell rang a few moments later and then everyone was rushing out of the classroom, a foot kicking out and catching Morty from where he was still kneeling on the ground trying to collect his dropped cards. He tumbled back, a hand instinctively raising to rub at his now aching side.

Mrs. Lloyd called out Morty's name and Morty stood up, giving up on making his shaking hands pick up the cards.

"Yes Mi-Mi-Mrs. Lloyd?"

The teacher looked up in boredom at her student and let out an exasperated sigh.

"Your presentation has received an F, really Morty this is already a remedial class, I don't want to have to hold you back but your grades... I might need to talk to your parents about getting you evaluated. It's not easy to say this but honestly Morty you're an idiot."

Morty felt his stomach swoop, he wasn't one to openly admit it but it was difficult knowing that he was so stupid, that his only real value was through his brain waves. Morty managed a small nod before grabbing his back pack and scrambling from the room.

That had been his last period which meant that he was headed home today. Usually he would be picked up by his dad, catching a ride with Summer. However, today Summer was heading to a friend's house and his dad was at a job interview. He had been hoping that grandpa Rick would come to take him on an adventure but that hadn't happened.

Now he was left making the three mile walk back home. It wouldn't have been such a big deal if it hadn't been raining all day. Letting out a soft sigh, Morty stepped out from the school doors and began heading on his way home. It seemed that the moment he stepped out the light drizzle turned into a heavy down pour, Morty was soaked in minutes.

Morty glanced to the side when a red corvette began cruising alongside him, it was stupidly cliche. Morty forced himself to look at the pavement and increase pace even as the window slid down and the jeering voice of one his classmates came out the window. Morty ignored it, that is until an empty beer bottle hit him in the head, he stumbled and fell to the ground, pain now radiating from his head.

The jeering laughter got louder and Morty blinked his vision into focus to realize that his classmates had climbed out of their car and were now circling him. Words were flung out, 'idiot, 'retard, 'worthless sack of shit', they were all painfully familiar and made a part of Morty ache which he usually pretended didn't exist.

They beat on him for a few minutes, leaving him sporting a black eye and a few more bruises before they got in the car, dumping some of their beer on him as they left. Morty laid there on the ground for a few minutes, body hurting and now smelling like cheap beer. With a fortifying intake of breath he got back up and continued on his walk home.

Morty was surprised to find that the door was locked, he fumbled for a few minutes checking under the welcome mat and then under some of the rocks to the side. The spare key however wasn't there. Morty let out a groan and let his head thud against the door, today had been really crappy and Morty felt super crappy.

Climbing over the fence, Morty walked past the small mounds which indicated where the real Morty and Rick of this reality were buried, grass had grown over them now and a few weeds were poking above the mounds. Morty felt whatever had been growing in his gut all day sink heavier. The back door was unlocked and Morty slipped through. There Rick was, seated at the couch, watching TV. Morty felt hurt bubble up in him, he had knocked at the door for a while and no one had answered, he had assumed it was because no one was home.

"He-he-hey, Rick," Morty mumbled out, not wanting to look at his grandpa. He was too tired to yell and tell Rick what a douchebag he was being.

"Helllllllo, di-dipshit," Rick grumbled, eyes still focused on another inter-dimensional TV show that involved round yellow discs that were fighting against shapeism in the form of superior square over lords.

Morty flinched at the name, usually he was able to ignore his grandfather's insults, able to take them at face value, today however had been difficult and the insult stung.

Rick looked over, annoyance on his face, when Morty didn't respond.

"Ya-ya-ya look like shit, Morty, reaaaaally bad shit Morty, must've been a real bitch today, huh Morty. Your cla-class-claa, peers musta, musta realized you're a reaaal retard, Morty."

Morty lowered his gaze, tears filling his eyes. Anger bubbled up just to die into pain.

"I-I, don't want to, to, to talk about it, Rick."

Rick's eyes narrowed and he raised his head. Morty had turned away though and was heading up the stairs. A rough hand gripped him and swung him around. Morty was surprised to see Rick glaring down at him.

"Wha-whaBLurrght is this, Morty? What is it? You-you-you think you can solve it all, like me, noooooot smart Morty, not smart."

Morty blinked in confusion, he had no idea what Rick was talking about, he was tired though and Rick's hands were gripping his arms in a hold that was quickly becoming painful.

"I do-don't, Rick, I-"

"Drinking gonna fi-fix all your problems, Morty, is that what you think Morty? Tha-that what youUuuurp think?"

Rick's voice had hardened more and he was now shaking Morty roughly.

"Yo-you'r-you're a piece of shit if you thi-think that Morty, you know that Morty, a p-p-p-piece of shit!"

Morty felt unwanted tears form in his eyes. He didn't want this right now, his head hurt and his torso hurt and most of all he already felt like a piece of shit without his grandpa affirming it.

Rick shook him again, "No-not- end up, me, I, not li-li-like me, Morty. Do-don't end up like me, Morty."

Rick pushed him and Morty fell to the ground.

"Yo-you're worthless Morty, go-go-gonna end up just like me."

Rick walked away and Morty stared after, eyes wide and watering. Morty slowly got to his feet and then rushed up the stairs, throwing himself into his room where he curled up on the bed sobbing.

A few minutes later he heard the door open.

"Mo-Morty?" Rick's voice was hesitant.

"Wh-where, where did you get tha-that bruise?"

Morty curled further into himself. Rick didn't care, he just wanted something, wanted to make sure that his human shield stayed around.

"Yo-yo-you don't have to pretend, Rick, I kn-know, I-I-I'll still go-go on adventures."

There was silence and Morty continued crying on his bed, expecting that the door would slam shut in a few seconds, it didn't. Instead he felt as a weight settled on his bed and the smell of hard liquor joined the stench of cheap beer still on his shirt. Nothing was said.

A hand landed on his head and began gently stroking his hair. Morty's crying slowly died and he tried to figure out why his grandpa was doing this.

"I-it's o-okay, you don't, don't, don't have to do this, I'm alright with being wor-wo-worthless, Rick."

The hand didn't stop and Rick didn't leave. Instead the weight on the bed shifted and the other hand wrapped around Morty's shaking shoulders.

"I-I-I, we're a real cou-couple pieces of shit, bu-bu-but shi-shit, it's worth a little, Morty, wo-worth a little."

Rick tried to pull Morty into a hug but Morty stiffened and resisted.

"Yo-you-you, you're my Morty, my Morty, no-not worthless."

Morty broke at that and let Rick pull him into a hug and press a sloppy, drunk kiss to the top of his head.

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Thanks for reading.


	4. Chapter 4

Here is another chapter! Thanks for the kind words, nice to know someone is enjoying my work!

If you have any suggestions or thoughts feel free to PM me or leave a review!

I promise, I really do, that I intended this to be a lot more light hearted, but this is where my writing took me and I couldn't argue with the muse. I apologize in advance for the dark subject matter, it's all innuendo for the most part and the dark thought of 'what could have happened'.

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4.

They were both standing in an alien club, the deep thrum of strange music reverberating through the room and bodies everywhere of so many different shapes and sizes that it looked like a mass of fleshy, rainbow colored putty being thrown about in the delirium of flashing lights and exotic smells. Morty just felt dizzy from the overwhelming smells and put a hand out to steady himself, unfortunately he steadied himself on another being, one which began making high shrieking noises. Morty jerked away, stuttering out an apology. The creature seemed to become even more enraged and began to advance toward Morty.

Rick swooped in, stepping in front of Morty and spouting off some language at the creature, a hand moving to rest on the gun tucked in his waist band. Whatever Rick had done had the creature backing off immediately and moving away from them.

"Go-gotta be careful Morty, reeeaaal careful Morty. Place like this, area, area, like this. People'll hurt ya Morty, hurt ya."

Morty nodded, "O-okay, Rick," he paused a moment, staring up at Rick whose gaze was already back on the room, searching for something or someone.

"Tha-thanks, Rick," Morty said quietly, a small smile on his face.

Rick didn't seem to acknowledge what Morty said, instead moving off into the mass of aliens. This time however, Rick had a hand circled around Morty's wrist in a gentle hold. Usually Morty would've yanked it away and protested the treatment, however here he appreciated the gesture. The club was overwhelming and the dizziness, though not getting worse, wasn't going away.

They got where ever Rick had wanted, the far side of the club where the round booth tables were. This particular one had a gromflomite leaned back and dressed in extravagant clothing that looked foreign to Morty. He was surrounded by several women alien, or at least Morty assumed they were women alien, they very well may have been men, but their purpose as sexual providers in both social flaunting and personal endeavor was obvious by their behavior.

Rick began spouting off again in a strange language. The gromflomite responded in the same language. Whatever they were discussing grew boring as Morty couldn't understand what they were talking about. The gromflomite made a motion and Rick let go of Morty's wrist, and slid into the booth next to the gromflomite, seizing a drink that was offered to him. Rick seemed to add as an after thought the order for Morty to stand somewhere and not get into trouble. Morty managed a nod, anger causing him to not answer his grandpa and just stomp off and lean against the wall.

Minutes passed and Morty began feeling more sick, head beginning to pound from the heavy music and thick smoke in the air. It wasn't the type of ill feeling that was serious, more of a nuisance. Morty closed his eyes and wrapped his arms around himself, trying to make himself feel better. It didn't really work, but the pain eased a little as the strobing lights no longer lanced painfully across his vision.

Morty jerked as some sort of appendage landed on his arm. Eyes flying open and hunching down in fear, Morty saw a human looking person, the only thing which made them appear different being the four eyes blinking kindly down at him.

"Hey kid, what are you doing over here?"

Morty floundered for a moment, unsure if he should be afraid of this stranger. The deep voice and how the alien was dressed pointed to it being male.

"M-My grandpa," Morty jerked a hand out to point in the direction of the booth where Rick was currently exploding in some kind of laughter with his arm slung around the gromflomite and a drink in the other.

"I'm waiting for him."

The man let out a smile and gave him a sympathetic smile.

"You stuck here until he's done?"

Morty felt slightly uncomfortable answering the question, but he ended up quickly nodding his head.

"Well, I'm sure you're not used to this, the smoke and lights and everything can make you feel sick."

Morty rubbed his arm nervously, eyes looking at the ground. "Yeah," he said quietly.

The man ran a hand through his hair and shook his head.

"Well, I can bring you a chair, sitting down can help you feel better."

Morty frowned, a chair wasn't malevolent and the man wasn't asking him to go anywhere. On top of that he'd maintained a healthy distance from Morty, this wasn't like the Jellybean incident.

"Tha-that'd be nice," Morty mumbled, a small smile adorning his face.

The man beamed back, all four eyes blinking simultaneously. He walked off and came back a few minutes later with a simple stool and set it down for Morty. He left after that. Morty looked over at Rick, his grandpa appeared to be getting smashed, alcohol dribbling down his mouth and that wide eyed and glazed look in his eyes. Morty looked down at the floor, feeling lonely and useless. Times like these were moments which proved to him that Rick really didn't need him, his grandpa in so much pain that he had to get away from Morty and become drunk. He knew that it wasn't him, as Birdperson had explained his grandpa was in a lot of pain and that Morty had more impact on him than he thought. It still didn't erase the painful feeling of worthlessness which settled in Morty's stomach.

A loud laugh from his grandpa had Morty tearing his gaze away and setting it on the ground.

"Hey, kid," a familiar voice said.

Morty looked up to see the man from before, he had a drink in his hand.

"Thought you might want something to drink."

He offered the drink to Morty who took it, innocently assuming that it was as kindly given as the chair had been. Morty actually was pretty thirsty, he guzzled about half of it before pulling back. A few seconds passed and his body went completely limp, the cup falling to the floor. Morty would've quickly followed except for the fact that the man had gently caught him. He was pulled into the man's arms, cradled so his head was lolling uselessly against the man's chest and the man's one arm under his knees.

Morty felt so tired, his entire body so weak he couldn't move. He was awake though. The man lowered his lips near Morty.

"We're gonna have fun you sweet little human."

Morty felt his entire being overcome with terror, this was just like Mr. Jellybean.

"N-n-no, pl-please," Morty softly begged, too weak to raise his voice.

The man began walking, making his way through the crowd until he came to a door. Morty hadn't really grown much and he knew that he was pretty small for his age, so the man easily opened a discreet door and stepped through without losing his hold on Morty. The door shut and the sounds of the club were immediately muffled. The man moved down a hallway, opening one of the many doors lining it, stepping into a room with a bed, a water basin, and a dresser. He gently placed Morty on the bed, Morty had tears streaming down his cheeks but he was too weak to scream for help, even if he could it wasn't likely that anybody would hear him or even care if they did.

The man leaned over him, a hand brushing at the tears pouring from Morty's eyes.

"Shhh, shhhh, kid, I'll be gentle, don't worry, I won't hurt you. This'll be good for both of us."

This just made Morty let out a soft whimper of fear, crying out silently as he couldn't make his body move. Whatever he had drunk had completely incapacitated him while leaving him wide awake and aware of what was going on.

The man went to the dresser and opened a drawer, pulling out a few items which made Morty's heart thump faster in fear. The man came back to the bed, hands moving forward and unsnapping Morty's jeans. The man got onto the bed, straddling Morty and pushed a hand up his shirt. Morty wanted to die, he was so afraid even though he knew what was happening, there was no way to fight back, not like with Mr. Jellybean. He was going to be used and then who knew what the man would do with him after.

A hand began crawling up his shirt, fingers smoothing over his stomach while the man leaned down, mouth descending on Morty's and using him, foreign saliva being painted across Morty's face and neck.

The door burst open and Morty heard his name called out by Rick. There was the sound of a gun firing and the body which had been molesting him collapsed against him dead. Rick rushed over, pushing the body off the bed and onto the ground and then began prodding at Morty.

"Tha-tha-that bastard, what, what, whUURrpat did he give you?"

Morty could respond, tears still leaking from his eyes. The terror had been replaced by a relief so potent that it made him cry even more.

Rick was shaking him, trying to see if he was injured.

"C-c'mon Morty, ya gotta answer me Morty!"

Morty was too upset to force his weak voice to work and merely kept crying.

"I-I need an answer, Morty!" Rick's tone was frantic and his hands rough with hysteria.

Morty was surprised to see the amount of fear that was in Rick's gaze, fear and worry. Rick shook him hard again and Morty let out another choked whimper. This seemed to snap Rick out of whatever panic he was in and he stilled.

"O-Oh Morty," Rick whispered, his own eyes swarming with tears.

He lifted Morty gently, holding him close in a rare hug, hands gently petting Morty's head and arms cushioning his grandson. A few moments passed and Morty could only lay there limp and crying, accepting the comfort his grandfather was giving him. Then Rick gathered Morty to him, arms cradling him just like the man's had, with the same gentleness and tender consideration. This time though, Morty felt safe. They walked out, Morty's head propped so he could see the dead body of the four eyed man as they stepped through the threshold.


	5. Chapter 5

Thank you everyone! I hope the chapter doesn't disappoint.

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5.

"AHHHHHH!" Morty screamed, running for his life down the empty plain of a far distant planet.

He was being chased by something which Rick had described as a Scrapplebar, a tiny soft and fluffy pink and black creature which according to Rick had a deadly poison. Rick was a few steps ahead, racing through the tall stiff grass that was dried a light purple by the intense maroon sun overhead. Morty could hear the animal behind him, the rabid snuffling sound as it raced after them.

Rick had promised that this planet was safe, no major predators having time to evolve and merely filled with a surprising number of fluffy creatures of varying sizes, none bigger than a large cat, all of which lived off of the vegetation. They had come here for the sunshine, a type of UV ray which was able to power and interact with very specific substances. Rick had tried explaining the complicated way of storing it and keeping it from changing form of energy but Morty honestly hadn't understood most of it.

So much for safe though, they would be out of the tall grass soon and the hidden creature chasing them would either stay in the grass or come out and be shot down by Rick. Just a few more feet. Morty tripped over something and crashed to the ground, only able to watch as Rick disappeared from view. Scrambling onto his back, Morty prepared to get back up and run but the small fluffy creature was already on him, sharp fangs sinking into his hand. Morty jerked back, hand pulling away from the weak jaws and the fangs dragging through his skin. The animal tumbled from him, slightly dazed, and then Morty saw as it exploded in a splatter of pink colored blood. Rick stood just behind him.

"O-Oh-O-O-Oh!" Morty cried, staring at his hand in horror.

The poison had been described by Rick as causing unbelievable pain before ultimately ending in the person's death, few responded well to the antidote.

"Rick! Ri-Rick!" Morty called.

Rick knelt next to Morty, worry crinkling his brow, but not the panic of impending death.

"Shu-shut up, Morty. Ya-you're gonna be alUuurp-alright."

Morty stilled, terror vanishing and confusion replacing it.

"Bu-but you-you said it was poisonous Rick."

There was a small flicker of shame and guilt that crossed Rick's face before disappearing.

"I-It's not," Rick said, face hidden from view as he bent over Morty's hand, giving it an undue amount of attention.

Morty's face scrunched up with anger and more confusion. Why would Rick say that? Rick didn't usually lie about these things, and the terror which had entered Rick's face when the creature had begun chasing them had been genuine. Morty opened his mouth to give an angry retort and question but Rick beat him to it.

"It's saliva acts as a truth serum, Morty, ya g-g-get it Morty? A truth serum."

Rick's voice was subdued and Morty felt something shift in him.

"Make's ya, make's ya, forces you to spill, spill it aaallll Morty, everything that you-yo-you hide."

A sort of logic made something click in understanding, Morty knew his grandpa, not all of him or everything about him but enough to understand that for who and what Rick was made this kind of serum worse than a slowly inflicted death by way of poison. The terror the creature had created had been completely genuine. Morty frowned, eyes cast to where his grandpa was tending to his hand. Rick feared facing his deeply buried truths more than anything.

"Oh."

They didn't say anything for a few moments, then Rick leaned over to Morty, an arm slipping behind his back and the other under his knees. Rick stood, Morty in his arms.

"Wha-what are ya doing Rick, I ca-can walk." Morty started to struggle to be put down, as if he was a toddler.

"Saliva a-also acts as an anesthetic."

A few moments after Rick said that, Morty passed out. When Morty woke up, he would be open mouthed, spilling his fears and worries, the things which were closest to his heart and generally the things which kept him up at night. Rick was silent as he made his way back to the ship, he propped his grandson up in the ship, the machines working.

This wouldn't have happened if Morty had just stayed in the ship while the machines gathered the rays of sunshine. Instead the little shit had wanted to explore. Rick hadn't been able to deny the bright innocent look of curiosity on Morty's face. Now look at where they were at.

Rick glanced at Morty, before looking out at the plains. He drew his flask from his coat, knocking back a good amount of it. It would start in a few minutes.

There was a soft moan as Morty came to, hands twitching and finally eyes opening.

"Rick?" Morty groaned.

Rick stayed where he was, eyes still staring resolutely forward. Morty would not only be completely uninhibited in speaking but also physically subdued, body sluggish and ability to concentrate non-existent. Glancing at his wrist watch Rick decided that the machines collecting the sunlight only needed a few more minutes. Morty stirred further, squirming on the seat.

Rick opened the door and started to slide out, intent on collecting the machines and getting off this stupid planet. A hand though caught his coat.

"P-please, do-don't go."

Rick turned to see Morty staring up at him with tear filled eyes and terror in his eyes.

"Don't l-l-leave me."

Rick clenched and unclenched his fists, trying to not be affected at all by his grandson's pleas.

"Le-let go of my coat, Morty, Ju-just gonna ge-get-get the machines, Morty."

This seemed to make Morty's grip increase and make the tears slide down his face.

"I'm sorry, Rick. I do-don't wa-want to disa-disap- let you down."

Rick shook his coat weakly, trying to get Morty to let go. When Morty didn't let go, Rick roughly yanked his coat away and got out of the spaceship, slamming the door shut. Marching over to the machines he picked one up and went to the trunk of the spaceship, eyes purposefully avoiding looking at his grandson. He set it in and repeated the action with the other four machines. Done with his task he got back into the spaceship.

Morty was curled into a ball, sobbing. Rick shut his door and started the spaceship up.

"I-I'm so-sorry, Rick."

"St-stop saying sorry, Morty, stop saying it, al-alright," Rick responded, voice heavy and slightly harsh.

He wasn't sure how much of this he could take.

"O-of course, Rick, So-I won't, I won't. I wanna ma-make you proud of me."

Rick closed his eyes and let out a deep breath, hand fumbling for a spare bottle of alcohol.

"Da-dad, he does-doesn't, I ma-make him ashamed. You ge-get mad, Rick, re-real mad, and I deser-deserve it, bu-but you're not ashamed of me. Mom, she, she, she, I make her sad a-and ashamed too, bu-but you Rick, you want me around, or or you you-at least you're no-not ashamed."

Rick tightened his hands around the steering wheel and grit his teeth. There was silence for a few moments.

"Ma-maybe you are, so-sorry about that."

"What did I say, no-no sorrys'," Rick snapped.

"So-sor-I won't." Morty replied in a defeated voice.

Rick let out a deep breath and ran a hand through his hair.

"Look, Morty, i-it's not, I'm not a-ashamed, you're you're a good kid Morty, the best, noBluurgh-nothing ashaming, 'bout you, Morty. I, I love you Morty, I never say it, I don't, but I do, Morty. Swea-swear to God, Morty, make me say the dumbest shit, bu-but I love ya."

Rick was surprised when Morty let out a loud sob.

"Th-that's a good thing, Morty, su-supposed to, was supposed to make you feel better."

Morty was curled up on the seat and when he didn't respond Rick placed a hand on his grandson's back.

"D-don't lie, Rick, please, I-I-I can't, can't have you lie ab-about that."

Rick felt his gut churn and he moved so that he could pull Morty up, and into a hug. Tears swam in his eyes.

"I do, I do, Morty. Love ya, 100 times, over and over."

Morty curled into Rick and Rick decided that maybe it was okay, the two of them, they were alright. Maybe it didn't feel that way, tears slipping down Rick's face and Morty wetting Rick's shirt with salt water.

* * *

Oh the sap, I feel like I could have done this better, taken the idea to better places.

Thanks again!


	6. Chapter 6

Hey, last chapter! Thank you to all who have read, reviewed, followed and favorited! I didn't anticipate anyone to do any of that! I hope the last chapter is alright and that you all enjoy it.

* * *

Five Times Morty Needed a Hug...

...And the One Time Rick Did

* * *

It was the weekend, Summer was out with friends and Morty's parents were on another fix their failing marriage date. Rick hadn't expressed any desire to go on an adventure, ignoring Morty and at breakfast not saying a word, except to quickly kiss Beth on the head and inform her that she had 'made the crap' out of the hash browns.

Morty was bored, that and slightly worried, when he'd gone into the garage earlier to visit with his grandpa instead of the usual insults and verbal diatribes Rick had been terse and taciturn, not explicitly asking Morty to leave but rather completely ignoring him and giving mainly 'yes' and 'no' answers to everything Morty said. Morty had left after a little while, hurt being the main thing he felt from his grandpa's write off of him.

Sitting in front of the TV he had been zoning out, trying to think about why his grandpa was being so weird, the hurt had settled a little and instead worry had come over him. Rick wasn't usually like this, at all.

Biting his lip, Morty tried to make up his mind on whether or not to leave grandpa to himself or to try to bother him again. Letting out a huff of breath Morty clenched his fists, mind made up to try to figure out what was going on. He stood and made his way into the garage, he faltered in front of the door, courage failing for a moment. Knocking softly on the door, Morty stood there, a hand holding one hanging arm in nervousness. He waited a few moments for his grandpa to call out in his drunken voice, a rough voice allowing him to enter. Morty frowned when there wasn't an answer.

Hesitantly he opened the door, head peering through to look into the room beyond. Whatever hesitancy he was experiencing was gone though when he spotted Rick's body sprawled on the floor, and terror and worry replaced it.

Morty raced over, falling to his knees and placing a hand on his grandpa's arm. For one horrible moment he was sure that Rick was dead, but then he noticed the heavy rise and fall of his chest and then Rick's eyes fluttered open. They were at half-mast and Rick looked even more out of it than he usually did.

"R-R-Rick?!" Morty cried, voice high with worry.

"M-Morty," Rick replied weakly.

He spluttered then, a painful coughing ripping through and causing blood to spew from his mouth and land on Morty's hand, dying his white coat a dark maroon.

"Wh-what happened, Rick? You-you-you, you're bleeding!"

Rick let out a throaty chuckle and coughed up a bit more blood, eyes sliding shut as a weak and bitter smile quirked the corner of his mouth.

Morty felt terror lance through him as his grandpa's eyes shut and then anger worked its way into him and he pulled a hand back, slapping Rick in the face.

It worked and Rick opened his eyes again, annoyance prominent on his face.

"Wh-what the fuck, Morty, d-d-don't be a little shit."

The anger and vociferous intent of the sentence was betrayed by the weakness of Rick's voice and the blood which now stained his mouth and shirt front.

"You tell me, Rick, right now, ho-how to fix this!"

Rick laughed again, more blood accompanying the laugh. Morty's mind started to catch up to the situation and he realized, belatedly that this was intentional, the blood and pain, the sharp and sudden end to everything as Morty knew it was a choice that Rick had made. Morty's heart clenched and tears sprung to his eyes. He held them back though because Rick was dying and Morty could tell by looking at his grandpa that he didn't have much time.

Mind racing, Morty stood up and stepped away from his grandpa, eyes scrambling to find something in the garage that would save Rick. Just as despair began to enter him, Morty remembered a small collection of a cure all mixture Rick had picked up in a decent amount from an advanced civilization from another timeline. Morty lurched to the work table and wrenched one of the drawers open, he pawed through the drawer before realizing that what he was looking for wasn't in it. He shut it quickly and and opened the next one. He rummaged through it. This drawer was like the last.

Morty looked over his shoulder as he opened a third drawer. Rick was on his side, vomiting blood. Morty turned back to his task with greater energy. Relief surged through him when he saw the small vials lined up in the drawer alongside needles for injection. Morty grabbed a vial and loaded it. Rushing back over to Rick he didn't hesitate as he plunged the needle into Rick's neck.

A few seconds passed and the shakes which Rick had been experiencing died and his body became still. Another moment passed and Rick opened his eyes. Morty was dead silent as he watched his grandpa blink, emotions in his eyes which Morty had never witnessed. He had never seen a more broken and devastated look on someone's face. Rick looked over at Morty, eyes watering and mouth trembling.

"M-Morty?"

Morty felt his own tears welling in his eyes, exhaustion overcoming him as the adrenaline died. There was shame in Rick's eyes, shame and pain deeper than Morty had ever seen. Rick held his gaze for a moment longer and then looked away, propping himself so he was sitting up.

"Gr-grandpa?" Morty asked as silence reigned.

There was no answer, instead Morty noticed that Rick's shoulders were beginning to shake and then the sound of harsh sobs entered his ears and Morty realized that his grandpa was crying. His eyes widened and he was unsure of what to do. The cries grew slightly louder, but were muffled by where Rick had an arm pressed against his mouth, head bent low.

Morty moved forward and wrapped his arms around Rick, the teenager's arms gripping tight and a hand rubbing his granpa's back. Rick began crying harder and he turned, wrapping his own arms around Morty and accepting the comfort being offered.

"I-it's okay, grandpa, you,you, you're alright, Rick. I'll help, I-I'll help."

* * *

The End.


End file.
